WASHINGTON (AP) — A Mexican cartel drone incursion prompted an hourslong closure of airspace around El Paso International Airport in Texas that was lifted on Wednesday morning, the Trump administration said.
Just hours earlier, the Federal Aviation Administration had announced a 10-day closure grounding all flights to and from the airport.
Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said in a post on X that the FAA and the Defense Department “acted swiftly to address a cartel drone incursion. The threat has been neutralized and there is no danger to commercial travel in the region.” He said normal flights were resuming Wednesday morning, but did not say how many drones were involved or what specifically was done to disable them.
The shutdown “for special security reasons” had been expected to create significant disruptions given the duration and the size of the metropolitan area. Texas Gov. Greg Abbott’s office referred questions to the FAA.
Steven Willoughby, the deputy director of the counter-drone program at the Department of Homeland Security, told lawmakers in July that nearly every day cartels are using drones to try to bring drugs across the U.S.-Mexico border and surveil Border Patrol agents.
More than 27,000 drones were detected within 500 meters (1,600 feet) of the southern border in the last six months of 2024, he testified, most flying late at night. Homeland Security has said agents have seized thousands of pounds of methamphetamine, fentanyl and other drugs in recent years that cartels were trying to fly across the border using drones.
Mexican officials head to Washington following shutdown
El Paso, a border city with a population of nearly 700,000 people and larger when you include the surrounding metro area, is hub of cross-border commerce alongside the neighboring city of Ciudad Juárez in Mexico. The brief closure did not include Mexican airspace.
Ciudad Juárez is home to about 1.5 million people, and some of its residents are accustomed to taking advantage of facilities including airports on both sides of the border. That easy access to the U.S. has also made Juarez, like other border cities, attractive to Mexico’s drug cartels that seek control in order to safeguard their smuggling routes for drugs and migrants headed north and cash and guns moving to the south.
The airport said in an Instagram post after the closure was announced that all flights to and from the airport would be grounded through late on Feb. 20, including commercial, cargo and general aviation flights. Local newscasts showed stranded travelers with luggage lining up at airline ticket counters and car rental desks at the El Paso airport hours after flights were grounded. The airport posted Wednesday morning that its operations had resumed and encouraged travelers to contact their airlines for the most up-to-date flight information.
Mexican defense and navy secretaries will meet with Northern Command officials in Washington on Wednesday in a meeting attended by several other countries, Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum said during a news conference. Sheinbaum said the Mexican officials would “listen” in the meeting.
Sheinbaum said her government was going to look into “the exact causes” of the closure. Asked about the explanation given by U.S. officials, she said she had “no information about the use of drones on the border.” She noted that if U.S. authorities have more information they should contact Mexico’s government.
‘The information ... does not add up’
Rep. Veronica Escobar, a Democrat whose district includes El Paso, had urged the FAA to lift the restrictions in a statement Wednesday morning, saying neither her office, the city of El Paso nor airport operations received advance notice.
“I believe the FAA owes the community and the country an explanation as to why this happened so suddenly and abruptly and was lifted so suddenly and abruptly.” Escobar said during a news conference Wednesday morning.
“The information coming from the federal government does not add up,” Escobar said.
Escobar later said she believed the shutdown was not based on Mexican cartel drones in U.S. airspace, saying that “is not what we in Congress have been told.”
When asked about Escobar’s remarks, Pentagon officials said they didn’t have a comment.
The airport describes itself as the gateway to west Texas, southern New Mexico and northern Mexico. Southwest, United, American and Delta all operate flights there, among others.
A similar 10-day temporary flight restriction for special security reasons remained in place Wednesday morning around Santa Teresa, New Mexico, which is about 15 miles (24 kilometers) northwest of the El Paso airport. FAA officials did not immediately explain why that restriction remained in place.
U.S. Sen. Ben Ray Lujan of New Mexico, a Democrat, said in a statement: “Keeping our communities informed and safe is critical. I’m demanding answers from the FAA and the administration about why the airspace was closed in the first place without notifying appropriate officials, leaving travelers to deal with unnecessary chaos.”
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Associated Press reporters Jim Vertuno in Austin, Texas; Josh Funk in Omaha, Nebraska; Mike Balsamo and Konstantin Toropin in Washington; Kathy McCormack in Concord, New Hampshire; and María Verza in Mexico City contributed.
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WASHINGTON (AP) — The Federal Aviation Administration reopened the airspace around El Paso International Airport in Texas on Wednesday morning, just hours after it announced a 10-day closure that would have grounded all flights to and from the airport.
The FAA said in a social media post that it has lifted the temporary closure of the airspace over El Paso, saying there was no threat to commercial aviation and that all flights will resume.
A Trump administration official told The Associated Press that the airspace over El Paso was closed after Mexican cartel drones breached the airspace, but that the Defense Department took action to disable the drones.
Both the Federal Aviation Administration and the Defense Department have determined there is no threat to commercial travel, said the official, speaking on condition of anonymity to discuss a national security issue.
The official did not say how many drones were involved or what specifically was done to disable them.
The shutdown announced just hours earlier “for special security reasons” had been expected to create significant disruptions given the duration and the size of the metropolitan area.
El Paso, a border city with a population of nearly 700,000 people and larger when you include the surrounding metro area, is hub of cross-border commerce alongside the neighboring city of Ciudad Juarez in Mexico. The brief closure does not include Mexican airspace.
The airport said in an Instagram post after the closure was announced that all flights to and from the airport would be grounded from late Tuesday through late on Feb. 20, including commercial, cargo and general aviation flights. It suggested travelers contact their airlines to get up-to-date flight information.
Rep. Veronica Escobar, a Democrat whose district includes El Paso, had urged the FAA to lift the restrictions in a statement Wednesday morning. There was no advance notice given to her office, the city of El Paso or airport operations, she said.
“The highly consequential decision by FAA to shut down the El Paso Airport for 10 days is unprecedented and has resulted in significant concern within the community,” Escobar said. “From what my office and I have been able to gather overnight and early this morning there is no immediate threat to the community or surrounding areas.”
The airport describes itself as the gateway to west Texas, southern New Mexico and northern Mexico. Southwest, United, American and Delta all operate flights there, among others.
A similar temporary flight restriction for special security reasons over the same time period was imposed around Santa Teresa, New Mexico, which is about 15 miles (24 kilometers) northwest of the El Paso airport.
Southwest Airlines said in a statement that it has paused all operations to and from El Paso at the direction of the FAA.
“We have notified affected customers and will share additional information as it becomes available,” Southwest Airlines said. “Nothing is more important to Southwest than the safety of its customers and employees.”
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EL PASO, Texas (AP) —The Federal Aviation Administration reopened the airspace around El Paso International Airport in Texas on Wednesday morning, just hours after it announced a 10-day closure that would have grounded all flights to and from the airport.
The FAA announced in a social media post that it has lifted the temporary closure of the airspace over El Paso, saying that there was no threat to commercial aviation and all flights would resume.
The shutdown was expected to create significant disruptions given the duration and the size of the metropolitan area. El Paso, a border city with a population of nearly 700,000 and larger when you include the surrounding metro area, is a hub of cross-border commerce alongside the neighboring city Ciudad Juárez in Mexico.
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EL PASO, Texas (AP) — The Federal Aviation Administration is closing the airspace around El Paso International Airport in Texas for 10 days, grounding all flights to and from the airport.
A notice posted on the FAA's website said the temporary flight restrictions were for “special security reasons,” but did not provide additional details. The closure does not include Mexican airspace.
The airport said in an Instagram post that all flights to and from the airport would be grounded from late Tuesday through late on Feb. 20, including commercial, cargo and general aviation flights. It suggested travelers contact their airlines to get up-to-date flight information.
The shutdown is likely to create significant disruptions given the duration and the size of the metropolitan area. El Paso, a border city with a population of nearly 700,000 and larger when you include the surrounding metro area, is hub of cross-border commerce alongside neighboring Ciudad Juarez in Mexico.
Rep. Veronica Escobar, a Democrat whose district includes El Paso, urged the FAA to lift the restrictions in a statement Wednesday morning. There was no advance notice given to her office, the city of El Paso or airport operations, she said.
“The highly consequential decision by FAA to shut down the El Paso Airport for 10 days is unprecedented and has resulted in significant concern within the community,” Escobar said. “From what my office and I have been able to gather overnight and early this morning there is no immediate threat to the community or surrounding areas.”
The airport describes itself as the gateway to west Texas, southern New Mexico and northern Mexico. Southwest, United, American and Delta all operate flights there, among others.
A similar temporary flight restriction for special security reasons over the same time period was imposed around Santa Teresa, New Mexico, which is about 15 miles (24 kilometers) northwest of the El Paso airport.
Southwest Airlines said in a statement that it has paused all operations to and from El Paso at the direction of the FAA.
“We have notified affected customers and will share additional information as it becomes available,” Southwest Airlines said. “Nothing is more important to Southwest than the safety of its customers and employees.”